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FraudTech Dedicated To Beating The Cons At Their Own Game
PLAYERS: Males. Usually two or more suspects involved. VICTIMS: Males of all races and ages. CONTACT: Truck stops, parking lots near large businesses, and public transportation sites. Always promoted as a game of skill. The con artist uses three cards, usually two black spot cards and a red Queen. After placing a lengthwise crimp (bend) in them, he uses a tossing motion with both hands to mix the cards when throwing them facedown on the table. The mark is invited to guess where the Queen lands and is, of course, encouraged to place a wager. Monte hustlers usually work as a team, with a lookout and a third member who acts as a shill to win money and get the crowd involved in the betting. The big money in this scam comes at the end through a sucker bet. The card dealer (also known as a "broad tosser" because of the action of tossing the Queen) appears to inadvertently place a bend on the corner of the red Queen. The shill informs the mark of this mistake and promises huge profits. What the mark doesn't know is that the card tosser now removes the bend from the red Queen and places an identical bend on one of the black spot cards. Once the mark looses all of his money the scam is moved to another location. If the mark refuses to play along, the scam can quickly turn into a robbery. The shell game is played out in the same fashion. However, instead of following the movement of a card, the mark must keep tabs on a small pea-sized ball. The con artist can easily manipulate the pea by palming it, or placing it between his fingers rather than under the shell. In other words, like the cards, the con can place it anywhere he wants.
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